Source: This news article was written by Akshaya Mukul and originally published in The Times of India, online edition on August 8th, 2014
Source url: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/1857-memorial-chairs-vacant-in-Ignou-for-last-6-years/articleshow/39847839.cms
NEW DELHI: Three chairs set up at Indira Gandhi National Open University to commemorate 150 years of the revolt of 1857 are lying vacant despite the culture ministry having released the funds.
Source: This news article was written by Akshaya Mukul and originally published in The Times of India, online edition on August 8th, 2014
Source url: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/1857-memorial-chairs-vacant-in-Ignou-for-last-6-years/articleshow/39847839.cms
NEW DELHI: Three chairs set up at Indira Gandhi National Open University to commemorate 150 years of the revolt of 1857 are lying vacant despite the culture ministry having released the funds.
The chairs are in the names of last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, INA veteran Shahnawaz Khan and Kartar Singh Sarabha of Ghadar Party. The culture ministry allocated Rs 2 crore for Bahadur Shah Zafar chair in 2008 and Rs four crore for Shahnawaz Khan and Sarabha chairs in 2010. But Ignou is yet to make the appointments.
Sources said norms for appointment were approved in 2011-12 by Ignou board of management and in January 2013, the chairs were transferred to be run by Indira Gandhi Centre for Freedom Struggle Studies under the School of Social Sciences in JNU. Selections were also made in February 2013. However, after Mohammad Aslam took over as vice-chancellor in March 2013, the appointments were not cleared.
On his part, Aslam says appointments for these chairs will be made now. "It is our top priority. We are in the process of restructuring the guidelines approved by the board of management. There is no point having chairs if it is not run properly. We want to make chairs functional," he told TOI.
The VC denies that norms were approved earlier and even those to be appointed were shortlisted. Aslam says university was busy with admissions and examination. However, university sources say there is a record of approval by the board of management.
There is also allegation that Ignou has been sending fabricated reports to culture ministry, showing the work under the Indira Gandhi Centre for Freedom Struggle Studies as being done under the chairs whereas the research money sanctioned for these chairs is lying idle in the bank.
Aslam denies it, saying,"I have been prodding culture ministry to clear the norms approved by university’s board of management."